Respite Care and Sitting Service

Respite care from Kentish Home Care is the answer if you are a care giver and need a break. It is also the response if the elderly individual wants a change and feels the two of you need some time apart, however brief. Think about it. Sometimes a sitting service is exactly what both elderly parent and care giver need.

What to Expect From Respite Care

As people grow older, they often prefer to remain in their own homes. This is a decision they reach on their own or after talking to their friends and family. Sometimes, to help him or her remain in home, a family member may move in and act as a caregiver. Sometimes, in the case of an elderly couple, one partner may remain healthy and lively, perfectly capable of providing for and attending to the needs of the other. But no matter how devoted an individual may be, they do need times off. This is when respite care comes in handy.

What is Respite Care?

Every day, family, friends and/or neighbours provide unpaid assistance to an elderly person. This allows them to remain in their homes. This can become stressful to the caregiver. Moreover, the elderly person is not always the only responsibility the carer has. When a care giver requires a break, this is where respite care or an elderly sitting service comes in. It provides the carer with the chance to get away from it all for a while. Yet, it also ensures the elderly individual still receives the necessary care and consideration he or she needs.

Why Respite Care?

At Kentish Homecare, we know respite care is important to both the elderly individual and the carer for several reasons both psychological and physical. Respite:

Allows carers to have some time for themselves – to enjoy it without worrying about someone else

Lets the elderly individual have some time without the carer

Gives carers time to take care of business or personal matters

Provides the elderly person with someone else to talk to, confide in or argue with

Can help the elderly, the care giver or partner get out and about to handle normal chores or necessary items

This is true whether we offer care provided for a brief hour or for several days.

Kentish Homecare and Respite Care

The nature and character of respite careis not the same for every individual. It varies according to what is required and/or what is needed. It can also differ in terms of time. A respite visit can last a few hours or even weeks.

In general a respite visit from those at Kentish Home Care includes some or all of the following:

Personal care – bathing, showering, dressing, helping to get in and out of bed

Practical Home Help – cooking, cleaning, washing, putting stuff away

Medication – helping to take, ensuring the medication is taken or checking to see if the prescriptions are up-to-date or require renewal

Tea and Conversation – sometimes a respite care visit involves nothing more strenuous than lending a listening ear, exchanging stories and enjoying a cup of tea while watching or listening to a favourite programme. When this is what is needed, respite care becomes a form of sitting service in more ways than one.